Outside
by Nessie71
Summary: I have never been to this world. From the moment I was born, I lived in this place. The Academy, they call it. I do not have a mother or a father, but I have taken on the name of the head researcher who named me Kyouko. Rating may change. Please review. It really helps.
1. Outside

KYOKO POV

The world outside my window is gray, patched with small swaths of color that change with the seasons. Black paths cut through this sea, striped with yellow. Normal people walk along the sides, while vehicles travel in the center. They go different ways on each side of the yellow line. How do they know which way to go when using the line?

I have never been to this world. From the moment I was born, I lived in this place. The Academy, they call it. I do not have a mother or a father, but I have taken on the name of the head researcher who named me Kyouko. He is Jin Kirigiri. That makes me Kyouko Kirigiri. I have the same eyes as he does. Purple eyes. No one else that I know has purple eyes. Are purple eyes normal? And for that matter, is it normal for a fourteen year old girl to have silver hair? So many questions that cannot be answered by what knowledge I have learned in classes with Jin. Even my keen logic cannot figure this one out.

My door creeks open and Eric enters, holding a clipboard in his hand. He sits down on the chair on the opposite side of the coffee table. I know what is coming next. Today is the day I am going to the outside world. Just for a bit. Just a visit to a colleague's house. I'm going with Jin because they don't want me to feel too insecure. I am scared, but a good kind of scared. Almost excitement.

"Kyouko, today you will be accompanying Mr. Kirigiri to visit the Togami house hold." Tachibabna says, "I need to make sure you are feeling ok before you leave. There will be teenagers there who might be... A little less open minded that's most of us researchers here."

"I feel fine." I say simply, "Is there anything I need to do?"

"You should meet Jin in the hallway in half an hour. Just make sure you aren't looking like a ruffian." Eric gets up and leaves making a note on his clipboard. I sigh and look over in the corner at Komeada. He is invisible to everyone else, but I can see him. He has been with me for as long as I can remember. This... Is why I live here. Because of our connection.

"Could you please not go psycho and strangle anyone?" I hiss at him. He raises his hands defensively and laughs.

"Can't make any promises." He says, "I won't hurt them if they don't hurt you!"

"Oh and you call a researcher giving me a vaccination hurting me?"

"It was poison! I'm serious!"

"Sure it was. You do realize that I get in trouble for all the stuff you do?"

"Better than you being dead." Komeada shrugs, "I don't know what I'd do without my little koneko."

"Ok, one, stop calling me that, two, I don't want to be locked up here the rest of my life, so do me a favor and don't traumatize anyone today." I slam my palm down on the table. Komeada glides through the couch to sit next to me.

"I'll see what I can do." he says smiling a little, "But if one of them gets too close to you with a knife..." He mimes grabbing a knife out of someone's hand and hitting them with the hilt, "K.O.!"

"Just don't ruin this for Jin, ok? Mr. and Mrs. Togami know who we are, but they don't know about all of your little homicidal incidents and I want it to stay that way. And don't even think about killing them." Komeada makes a face as if trying to find a loophole, be he knows what I mean. Killing is off limits today. No matter what.

* * *

The Togami place is a mansion. It's small than the Academy, but its still huge! It's hard to believe that people live in such huge places! Most houses, from what I know are about one tenth the size of this place. I wonder what the teens there are like? Not all of them live there of course. Most of them are friends of the teen that lives there.

I fallow Jin inside and we are greeted by Mr. and Mrs. Togami. Jin and Mr. Togami start talking about one thing or another and Mrs. Togami takes me over to the basement where all of the teens are hanging out. I walk in nervously and hear the sound of rock music. The basement is carpeted and has the appearance of a nice living room. Five others are standing around the room or sitting on the sofa talking about one thing or another. I feel out of place here. Like an intruder.

I feel like just leaving and walking back to the Academy. I'm not sure how to deal with this. I've never met teenagers before. Or anyone of my age. Only adults and Komeada. I'm not sure how old Komeada is. He seemed to age with me.

"Hey," A boy with sandy blond hair and glasses says, looking right at me. This must be Byakuya Togami. He looks like his father, but he wears glasses like his mother. He's also the only one dressed nicely here. Everyone else seems to be dressed normally. I think. I wasn't really taught anything like this, "Kyouko right?"

"Um... Yeah..." I say nervously. I'm just freaking out over this whole thing. They're all looking at me.

"Nice social skills." Komeada says in my ear. I ignore him because I don't want to make a scene.

"She's the lab rat, isn't she?" A girl with glasses and long brown braids makes a face at me. This was to be expected. Im a freak, they're normal, "Shouldn't she be in some cell somewhere?" I feel Komeada's annoyance, and I try to mentally tell him not to murder anyone.

"You know Touko, just because she's different doesn't mean she's out to get you." says the girl with the ponytail, "You're getting really paranoid about even the smallest of things." Did they already know about me?

"She's not normal, Aoi! She's the schizophrenic one who killed a bunch of people!" Touko shouts at the ponytail girl.

"Oh, and your alter ego isn't." A boy, the exact same hight as Komeada. He looks like Komeada, except for his hair and they dress slightly differently. They have the same eyes, same easy smile. It's almost creepy.

"Leave her out of this, Makoto!" Shouts Touko, seeming even more enraged, "She's got nothing to do with the matter! The lab rat is our problem!"

"Woah!" Makoto holds up his hands in defense, glancing over in my direction slightly. I knew it. They hate me and they are scared of me. I hate when people oars scared of me.

"It's ok. If you don't want me here, I can just walk back to the Academy, no harm done." I scratch the back of my head nervously. Makoto glares over at Touko. I didn't want this sort of reaction.

"We don't. So leave." Touko sticks her tongue out at me. The best thing to would be to leave. I turn and start up the stairs, when someone grabs my wrist. My instincts kick in and I put the person into a strangle hold, only to realize that it's Byakuya. Why did he go after me?

"Sorry." I say releasing him, "Instinct." He doesn't attempt to fight back. He just stares at me in shock and, what I think might be fear. Oh this is magical. Now I won't be allowed outside the Academy again.

"That was cool dude!" The guy with crazy dreadlocks says, "Are you a ninja?"

"Shut up, Yasuhiro! She's violent! She attacked my white knight!" Touko yells to the others.

"Ok, one, please don't call me that. Two, it was a complete misunderstanding. It's not like she gets to see the real world everyday." Did Byakuya just defend me? Why? I attacked him just because he grabbed my wrist, that is to say, with little provocation and now he is telling his friend that I am not homicidal. Even when I attacked him not five seconds ago, "Cut her some slack, will you?"

"I still don't like her." Touko glares at me.

"Sucks to be you." Byakuya shrugs, "Now that we're all here, I'm gonna go change into something that I can walk around in without looking like a dork. We're ditching this dumb business meeting." He walks off down a hall and into a room. Maybe his room is in the basement too. Komeada stands in font of Touko giving her the finger. I don't try to stop him. I was ticked off by the whole lab rat thing too.

"So... Why do you live at the Academy anyways?" Asks Aoi. This is a curiosity question. A real one that isn't meant to offend anyone.

"I... Have a connection with... A... Um..." I look over at Komeada who is sitting on the coffee table, "I don't know what he is really..."

"What who is?" Asks Makoto.

"Um... Komeada... He's always with me, but I'm the only one who can see him and... I'm not sure what exactly he is.." Komeada looks over at me as if saying, 'Really? That's how you describe me?'

"Komeada... What does he do?" Aoi bites her thumb nail. It must be a habit.

"Mainly, he gets me into trouble." I say, "And sometimes he helps me spy on the researchers who are always watching me through a two way mirror." I might have said too much.

"Cool. So, can he like, move stuff around?" She asks a lot of questions. She's a little too curious for her own good.

"Yes."

"Can I see?"

"You heard the lady!" Komeada says, "Let me do something! I'm bored!" I sigh.

"Um.. I guess so." I answer both of them at once. Komeada searches the room and then finds a book laying on a chair. Thank god he's not going homicidal on us. He picks it up and opens it to a random page. When I look at it closer, I see that it's a spiral note book. He snatches a pencil off a shelf and walks back over to where we sit. He puts the notebook down on the coffee table and everyone gasps. They were seeing a notebook and pencil flying through the air. It's understandable.

"It's a ghost, dude!" Shouts Yasuhiro. Thats also to be expected. Komeada ignores him and starts drawing. Even I'm curious as to what he's drawing. I know he likes to draw a lot. His drawings hang all over my room. Pictures of people, plants, the view from my window, or almost anything he finds on the internet. Small furry animals for example.

I shook carefully at the lines he's drawing. The basic shape of a male human head. Slightly more youthful, like a teenager. A neck and shoulders, covered in a dark hoodie and T-shirt. The features of a face, and... No hair yet... It's looks a bit like he's drawing Makoto until... He gives the person wild, light colored hair. He drew himself. He puts down the pencil and rips the sheet out of the notebook.

"Thats unnatural! No wonder they keep you locked up!" Touko shouts at me Komeada gives her a look of annoyance gives the paper to Aoi

"I think it's cool. Who is it? It looked like Makoto for a second, but the hair was different!" She says.

"That's what he looks like." I say, "Komeada, I mean. I think he was trying to show you who he really is."

"That's a good drawing." I turn around to see Byakuya dressed more causally in a hoodie and jeans, "He looks like Makoto."

"That's what I just said!" Aoi says, "Anyways, where are we going tonight?"

"Town." He says evasively, "Maybe the park." Town? Does he mean... The outside? I know that I am in the outside world right now... But I'm still confined within walls. I'm going to be going outside with real people... Teens like me. This is the best day of my life!

* * *

The streets are dark, but lit by dim lights that flicker slightly. More buildings than I can count. It's amazing. Komeada hovers beside me as we run. It feels great, running in town rather than on a track with wires and crap attached to you and people measuring your speed and stamina, or your blood sugar. It's different. In one of my biochemistry lessons, I learned that running can release endorphins that have appositive effect on your mood. This is what is happening. I am running, and my mood improves.

I now belong to a pack of sorts, like wolves who band together for the sake of one another. I guess I can be normal too, if Komeada doesn't decide to murder anyone. We keep pace with each other as if we are one being, and it fascinates me.

"Hey Togami! What are you and your loser bunch of pansies you call a gang doing on our turf?" Byakuya comes to a halt as a tall boy with spiky orange hair steps out of an alleyway in front of us.

"What does it look like, Kurosaki? We're passing through." says Byakuya evenly. The odds are in the middle if there were to be a fight. If there are more of them than us, it could get dangerous though. I know there are others. No one has enough hubris to go in alone. Komaeda can see them hiding. I know exactly where they are.

"Getting smart ass on me ain't ya, rich boy?" He takes a step forward, taking out a hidden knife.

"There are five others," I say, "All of them 'hidden' in the ally ways behind us. Who do you think you are challenging random people who just happen to be on your 'turf'?"

"Who are you?" Asks Kurosaki, "You new around here? Don't you know who I am?"

"If I just met you, then I probably don't know you." I know this will annoy him. My suspicions are confirmed.

"Another smart mouth eh? You got a death wish, bitch?" He cracks his knuckles menacingly. I'm not intimidated by this act. On the inside, he's just a scared little boy. I can see it in his eyes, "Come on out, soul reapers!" The five others come out and surround us. One with pineapple hair, a baldy, a girl with long orange hair, a guy with some sort of giant arm thing, and a pretty boy (AN: I can't describe Yumichika very well T_T).

"Shit..." Byakuya says, "Want do you want from us?"

"Since it was just the emo bitch who insulted me, I'll let all of you go in exchange for her." Oh? Is that what it's going to come to? They want to beat me up probably. This'll be a good chance to use some of my combat skills. This shouldn't be too different from training.

"All in favor of leaving the lab rat say I. I!" Whispers Touko.

"Shut it! We can't leave her here! Remember what Bykuya's dad said?" says Aoi.

"Can I get 'em?" Asks Komaeda. Well this is going to be a bit of a problem... But...

"Komaeda..." I say softly, "Go for the female."

"Hehehe! This is going to be fun!" Komaeda says. He goes up to the girl and grabs her wrist.

"Hey! What the hell?!" Shouts the girl. Komaeda smirks and rises into the air pulling on the girls arm.

"Orihime!" Shouts Kurosaki as Komaeda pulls the girl higher into the air, "What the fuck are you doing? Who is it?"

"Komaeda." I say. Aoi and the others look over at me in surprise. They know what Komaeda can do, but I don't think they know how strong he really is. Komaeda keeps climbing higher ignoring the screams of the girl as she struggles against something undetectable.

"Who the hell's Komaeda?!" He shouts, "It's that you bitch?"

"No. Komaeda is not me. He is connected to me." I say, "If you don't leave these people alone, he'll drop Orihime. Splat."

"What the hell are you?!" He hisses, a bead of sweat rolling down his face.

"I don't know." I say calmly. It's the truth. I'm not sure if I'm human, or what.

"Just go! Just put Orihime down and go!" He spits.

"Will do." I nod to Komaeda who drags her over to the nearest telephone poll and places her down directly on top. I may be sadistic, but I'm not sadistic enough to make her go splat. Yet, "Have a nice day, ladies!"

* * *

I hold the piece of paper bearing the email addresses of my new friends tightly in my hand and as Jin and I drive back to the Academy. When we got back, we managed to elude suspicion by pretending like we had been outside on the lawn. Apparently they weren't supposed to let me go to town yet. Fortunately, the adults don't know about what happened and they probably won't be finding out any time soon.

When we get back to the Academy, Jin walks me back to me room and hugs me goodnight. He locks the door behind me. Even though he says he trusts me, he still locks the door so that I cant go out for some nighttime wandering. I sit down at the window and star out at the world, lit up with a thousand lights, extending past the curve of the earth, calling to me. Maybe one day I will be allowed out there, one day. One day I can return to that world and maybe meet up with my friends. Maybe.

"Do ya wanna watch a movie?" I ask Komaeda. Sometimes I wish he were a real person. a person who other people could see and could be warm and solid.

"Sure! Let me find something good!" He zooms into the computer and in the blink of an eye, appears walking across my screen. He pulls up google and starts messing around in binary code. He can hack into anything, pretty much. It's amazing.

"Ooh! This one looks good!" I move the mouse over the cover of what looks like a picture of a blue cat like person. Komaeda looks over at it and pulls it up.

"James Cameron's Avatar." He reads, "It's about aliens. Looks interesting. Ok, let's see what I can do..." He starts doing various simultaneous google searches. Ones that will find the movie on a free website for good quality, "Here we go! Ok I'm coming out!" lea jumps out of my screen after he pulls up a website. I click the play button and the movie starts.

* * *

What do ya think? Please review!


	2. Choose

KYOUKO POV

I wake up to see Komaeda juggling butter knives over my bed. A usual Monday morning, I guess. It's been about two weeks since that one glimpse of the outside world and they've been testing me nonstop. Tests on my stress levels, my stamina, the distance Komaeda can go away from me before I black out, the usual. Today is a training day. Every Monday is.

"Ok, you can stop scaring people now." I climb out of bed and snatch one of the knives out of the air.

"Aw! But I was haiving so much fun!" Komaeda says, though he puts the knives down by throwing them at a poster of a kitten in a tree. They embed themselves on the corners, making it look like the only thing holding it up.

I put the knife that Im holding down on by bed side table. I change quickly into a sports bra, a white t-shirt, and athletic shorts. They will be here for me soon to take me to the training center. They have my bathing suit there if swimming is involved with my training.

Since there is time before they come to get me, I pull up my email on my computer and look through my inbox. Two new emails: one from a gaming website, and one from Makoto. I smile. It's nice when someone likes to talk to you, even if you're a freak. I open the email to find a picture of a beautiful landscape, covered in snow. Snow is small all icy partials that fall from the clouds. I have never seen snow in real life, nor do I know much about it. I save the picture to my hard drive. I type a quick thank you email and send it before there's a knock on my door. I turn to see Jin walking into my room. Yay! I run up and hug him. He's like my father, even though we're technically not related.

"Kyouko," He says as we sit down on the couch, "I wanted to talk to you about your future."

"My future?"

"Yes. There may be a chance of you being able to go and live in the outside world for a time."

"Really? Awesome!"

"But... There's one problem."

"And that is...?"

"Your life will be in severe danger if Komaeda chooses to pull his usual stunts like he does here."

"It was the knives, wasn't it?" I knew this sort of thing was coming.

"That and all the other things he's been doing." Jin hands me a news paper and on one page a picture of a gang of teens and a floating girl. I recognize all of them. Damnit! One of the thugs had a camera! We should have knocked that out of his hands before we lifted that chick into the air!

"What the...!" My eyes widen.

"I knew that you would jump at the chance to go outside. I know how much you hate being cooped up, so I suggested that the others take you outside. I never imagined that you would have a run in with the Soul Reapers."

"They seemed pretty lame if you ask me,"

"You were up against their leader and several of his gang mates. They are probably the largest gang in the city and very dangerous. You were lucky to get out of there alive."

"It was Komaeda who saved us. He's the one who scared them."

"It matters not. The point is, that the most dangerous gang in the city is out for your blood. I know that your... Friends can deal with them, but they have lived here their whole lives. They know how to escape. You... Cannot be lost."

"Im not a child. I can fight if I need to."

"Kyouko... I lied to you earlier. I am sorry about this." Tears start to well in Jin's eyes, "I fought tooth and nail against this, but the higher ups wouldn't back down. Kyouko... They are going to put you to sleep." I stare at Jin in disbelief. Put me down? That means...

"So... I'm too dangerous?" I look down at my hands.

"Im sorry... I didn't want this too happen... But they've been considering this for a while now... Before that little outing... But I'll be right next to you the whole time. It will only hurt when they give you the shot." They're going to kill me...

"Jin... I'm scared..." I whisper, covering my tear stained eyes. Jin puts his arms around me, striking my hair.

"I am so sorry... Kyouko... Put on something nice... Might as well look pretty when you..." he starts crying into my shoulder. Do I really mean this much to him?

"What about Komaeda?" I ask.

"You.. Could call this the final experiment... To see that if you die, he dies... If we are wrong in our hypothesis, then... He will probably go mad and kill... But the higher ups wont listen... They... Dont want to listen..." Jin stands up and walks out of the room, leaving me alone. I stare after him, in fear. They want to kill me...

"Kyouko... Is he... Serious?" Komaeda looks scared and heart broken beside me, "No... This isn't right..."

"Komaeda... Please... I don't want Jin to get in trouble..." I whisper.

"Kyouko! Don't you understand?! We're about to die!" Komaeda picks up a coffee cup and smashes it on the floor.

"I know... This was bound to happen..."

"What?! How can you take this lying down?!"

"Because Jin..."

"He's not even your real father!" Komaeda shouts, "Has it ever occurred to you, that he doesn't care about us? He's just another researcher trying to get information!"

"Stop... Please... Don't make this harder than it is. If I cease to exist, or whatever happens when you die, it'll be ok. At least Jin won't be in trouble..."

"Why do you care about him? You... Your life should more value than him just getting in trouble." Komaeda hisses. Why does he have to complicate things? I guesse... I should change now... Into that nice outfit that I got for the last outing. The one with the nice gloves and boots. The short black skirt and white dress shirt. The jacket and tie... This is what I will die in...

I step out of the room to see Jin waiting looking upset. Is he also... Scared? He leads me down a series of winding hallways. Komaeda fallows me, not saying a word. His last message rings in my ears. That I should put my life before Jin getting in trouble with the higher ups... Self preservation... Selfishness... I can't take this laying down... But if I die... Does Komaeda? Maybe this is why he was so angry... Because both of us will die... But Jin... Isn't my real father... No! Just because we're not related... He doesn't care about me... Why? Why is this happening?

We stand outside a door labeled, 'Extermination'. Extermination... A foul word... Why? Value my life... Jin isn't my father... He doesn't care about me... If I die... We... Both... Die...

we

both

die...

"Kyouko... Are you ready?" Asks Jin. His face is sad. I have to choose: Life or Death? My life or Jin being in trouble? Jin or Komaeda? Us or them? Choose... Choose... I must choose...

"... Komaeda..." I whisper. There is no turning back now. Jin, my apologies, "Now."

"Kyou...-" Jin turns around only to be thrown into a wall by Komaeda. I turn on my heel and run. Run like the wind. Like I never have before. The alarms sound. They know that I have gone rogue now. They are after me. I guess I can kiss the Academy good bye. Forever.

"Halt!" Im surrounded on all sides by security men. Each with a loaded tranq gun. And I'm on the top floor. It would be impossible to get out. Key word: would. Would be for a normal person. But then again, I am not a normal person.

"Komaeda! Now!" I shout. Komaeda gleefully smashes the window as I jump. The security men are stunned by the broken glass and don't shoot. They don't know what they're dealing with, do they? They should, but they don't. And that works for me. Works just fine.

Im falling, but Komaeda catches me, lowering me safely to the ground. He must have exerted a lot of energy getting me out of there because he looks a little tired. But we have no time to rest. More security men will be after me soon, and I gotta run, and fast. Thank god for all my training. And I have the Academy to thank. Talk about irony. But now... I need place to hide... I should first find an internet cafe or library and borrow one of their computers. Then I can email Makoto or someone and see if they can give me a place to spend tonight. Collect my thoughts and figure out where to run to next. I'm a fugitive now, so I need to be careful. But Komaeda is my look out. He is the only one I can fully trust.

"Kyouko, you little vixen!" Komaeda laughs, "You and your crazy mind! You gave me a scare for a minute!"

"Komaeda... I wanted to say thank you." I say as my feet beat a steady rhythm on the concrete sidewalks, "You ready for the adventure of a life time?"

* * *

This chapter was kinda short, but, hey! I like it, do u? Pleas review! Thanks! Have a nice day!


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